They came, they saw, they fizzled out. Thus was the plight of the “Army of God” in Buffalo, New York. Wednesday, January 22, 2003 marked the 30th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision, meanwhile, in Buffalo, the trial of James Kopp continues.<\/p>\n
“the hate filled want to build bunkers in your beautiful red earth, they want to build them in our shiny white snow…”<\/p>\n
Mr. Kopp has confessed to shooting Dr. Barnett Slepian, in his home, in October of 1998. The previously mentioned “Army of God” believes that Kopp was justified in what he did because it helped save babies from being aborted. The so-called army descended on Buffalo this week to whip up support for their newly crowned hero, Kopp.<\/p>\n
As many of you may know, Buffalo is a pretty cold place to live. Winters are harsh and not really conducive to protesting and rallying. The “Army” numbered about 12, and looked more like a gang than anything else. Toting signs that stated “Save a Baby, Call a Kopp” and other wonderful anti-abortion slogans, they froze their butts off in defense of what they believe to be a worthy cause.<\/p>\n
“So they went and stuffed God down the barrel of a gun, and after Him they stuffed His only son”<\/p>\n
The irony of the crusade is what really strikes me. Apparently, it is okay to shoot and kill Doctors, but not okay to abort babies. If they were truly pro-life, as they claim to be, they would be wholeheartedly against the killing of anyone. This includes the doctors who perform abortions.<\/p>\n
As you may have guessed, I am a staunch pro-choice supporter. I have always been and always will be a proponent of a woman’s right to choose what to do with her own body.<\/p>\n
Politics and religion have no place in the womb.<\/p>\n
This may not be a shared view, but it is mine and I am entitled to any opinion I have. After all, that is what being a human is about. We are thinking animals and even when we don?t agree we should be able to appreciate the fact that individuals come to opinions after much deliberation.<\/p>\n
“a bullet marked ‘right to life’, whizzed past his kids and his wife, and knocked his glasses right off of his face…”<\/p>\n
On both sides of the abortion issue there are valid points to be made, I just really feel that in the end it all comes down to the fact that this is my body and nobody can make decisions for me about what I want to do with it. In the end, whether abortion is legal or not, women will continue to make the choice. The difference is that when abortion is not legal the choice becomes much more dark and dangerous.<\/p>\n
Certainly a wire hanger is not the answer, but in desperation choices become cloudy.<\/p>\n
Abortion will always be a hot button in American society. There is absolutely no way around it. On both sides of the issue opinions and feelings run strong. It is a never-ending battle of politics and personal views that will just keep circling around and around for centuries to come.<\/p>\n
The important thing is to keep the Roe vs. Wade decision upheld, so as to not lose the legal means of this procedure. Women will continue to have control over their bodies and the choices that they make, but without the legal means of abortion many women will perish as a result of half-assed procedures.<\/p>\n
If we learn nothing else from the debate on choice, we must keep in mind this fact – criminalizing abortion does not stop it from happening, it just makes it more dangerous.<\/p>\n
Peace –
\nHippiegrrl<\/p>\n
All quotes in this piece are attributed to Ani Difranco, from her song “Hello Birmingham”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
They came, they saw, they fizzled out. Thus was the plight of the “Army of God” in Buffalo, New York. Wednesday, January 22, 2003 marked the 30th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision, meanwhile, in Buffalo, the trial of James Kopp continues. “the hate filled want to build bunkers in your beautiful red earth, … <\/p>\n